'The first thing I saw was 4ft of mud'

by Lincoln Archer
BBC News Online

As the security cordons at the centre of Boscastle are lifted, residents describe what they see as they return to their homes and businesses.

The clean-up has begun at some of the devastated businesses

Nev Chamberlain stands outside what remains of his and his wife's business, the Boscastle Bakery, and surveys the devastation.

The bakery's front and back walls are gone and debris is strewn across the floor.

"There's bits of trees and wood and God knows what in here that doesn't belong. The walls are gone, the bread rack is smashed to pieces, there are electric wires everywhere," he said.

Yet despite the grim scene before him, he thinks himself relatively lucky.

"There's more mud in here than I thought there was, but still less mud than others have because the water flowed right through the bakery."

Rebuilding

In the immediate aftermath of last Monday's flash flood, Mr Chamberlain had feared the bakery and the couple's home above it would have to be condemned.

A council assessment a few days later found that if a support wall could be rebuilt quickly, the building could be saved.

More assessments still have to be made, but that would be a welcome piece of good news for Mr Chamberlain.

Nobody in the village can believe the ovens have gone Nev Chamberlain, bakery owner

Much of the bakery's contents were carried off by the floodwater - even the ovens, which Mr Chamberlain said were 7ft high and 9ft wide (2.1m x 2.7m), and would have weighed at least two tonnes.

"Nobody in the village can believe the ovens have gone. They were so big and solid and heavy.

"They've still not been found. There's no sign of them anywhere, and yet I can see a lone sink still standing there" he said, adding that the couple's car is one of 15 in the town also still missing.

Mr Chamberlain was speaking to BBC News Online still in the protective clothing residents have been forced to wear due to the risk of contamination from ruptured sewers.

As he spoke, he saw one of his possessions emerge from the mud on the floor of the shop next door.

"They've just dug up my spirit level!" he said with a laugh. "How it got there I don't know."

Riverside damage

The bakery stands near the Riverside Hotel, which was also heavily hit in the flood.

"The first thing I saw when I went back in was 4ft of mud," said Peter Templar, the hotel's owner.

Peter Templar sifts through debris in his hotel

"Even up on the second floor, there's 2ft of silt in some of the bedrooms."

The back of the Grade II-listed hotel was battered by a 15ft (4.5m) wall of water last Monday, while an 8ft (2.4m) torrent passed by the front.

The removal of the security cordons would allow heavy machinery to be brought in to clear away the debris in the hotel and allow a more accurate picture to emerge of the repair bill.

Mr Templar has been told structural damage the building sustained could take until at least March to fix, but when he spoke to BBC News Online he was thinking of more immediate concerns.

"There's still food in the kitchen, so there's also an environmental risk there until we can clean it out," Mr Templar said.

The spotlight has been on us for what seems an eternity Peter Templar Riverside Hotel owner

He paid tribute to all those involved in helping the village cope in the wake of the flood, saying everybody there had been "superb".

But despite the relief of being allowed back into his hotel, he was still looking forward to leaving Boscastle to see family and friends and finalise the hotel's accounts for the insurers.

"The spotlight has been on us for what seems an eternity, although it's only been a week," he said.

"I just want to get in my car and get away for a few days."

Nevertheless, both men agree Boscastle will bounce back.

"We all know we've got a long job ahead of us before we can reopen," Mr Chamberlain said.

"But we're all keen to get there."